Sam Asghari condemns security guard in Britney Spears’ Las Vegas incident

Britney Spears was unfortunately involved in an incident that turned physical last night in Las Vegas. TMZ broke the news Thursday that Victor Wembanyama’s security guard slapped her in the face, knocking her to the ground, after she “tried to tap him on the shoulder.” The incident happened while Britney was at Catch restaurant with husband Sam Asghari and two others.

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Asghari took to Instagram hours after the news broke to share a statement about the situation on his Story. There has not been any video of the incident, but it sounds like Asghari may have gotten involved. “Self-defense can be unavoidable, but the defense of any woman, especially my wife, is not debatable,” he wrote. “I consider my reaction subdued considering what occurred, and I hope the man in question learns a lesson and changes his disregard for women.”

He continued in a second post tagging Wembanyama, “The violent behavior of an out-of-control security guard should not cast a shadow on the accomplishment of a great young man on the rise [Victor].”

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“The blame should fall on the coward who did this, the people who hired him without proper vetting, and a systemic culture of disregard for women within sports and entertainment,” he added. The actor expressed his horror at the scenario, “where an unarmed female fan showing any kind of excitement or appreciation for a celebrity would cause her to be physically assaulted, much less being hit in the face for tapping someone on the shoulder.”

Britney filed a police report after the incident. According to TMZ, the man listed on the police report is Damian Smith, the Director of Team Security for the Spurs. The outlet has had conflicting sources remark on whether it will be handled as a criminal matter.

Minutes before Asghari’s post, Wembanyama spoke about the incident with reporters. “Something did happen, he confirmed. “I was walking with some security in the restaurant, we were in the hall, and there was a lot of people coming in, and there was this person who was coming to me, and that person grabbed me from behind - not on my shoulder -she grabbed me from behind,” he said, conflicting reports that she tapped him.

He confirmed that his security did get her away, saying he didn’t know how much force he used. “I didn’t stop to look I just kept walking to enjoy the nice dinner,” he added.